DeRogatis v. Bd. of Trs. of the Welfare Fund of the Int'l Union of Operating Eng'rs Local 15, 15A, 15C & 15D, AFLCIO (In re DeRogatis)

DeRogatis v. Board of Trustees - What Workers Need to Know

This case involved a dispute between a union member, DeRogatis, and the board that manages his union's benefit funds. DeRogatis claimed the board failed to properly handle his benefits and didn't fulfill their legal duty to manage the funds in his best interest. He brought claims against both the union's welfare fund (which provides health benefits) and pension fund.

The appeals court delivered a split decision. For the welfare fund portion, the court ruled in DeRogatis's favor, finding there were valid questions about whether the board breached their duty to manage the fund properly. The court sent this part of the case back to a lower court for a full trial. However, DeRogatis lost completely on his claims against the pension fund - the court ruled against him on both his benefits claim and his argument that the board mismanaged that fund.

What This Means for Workers: This ruling shows that union members can successfully challenge how their benefit fund trustees handle their money, but they need strong evidence. Workers have the right to hold fund managers accountable, though winning these cases requires proving the trustees failed in their legal duties to members.